Thursday, July 2, 2009

Public Enemies

This movie was too damn long. I am sure that at the final screening, Johnny Depp hung his head and said, 'This movie is too damn long". Even if he loves himself, he had to get bored. Dillinger's actual crime spree was only 10 months long- about the length of this movie. It means to be as good as The Untouchables was. But it isn't. It puts a sentimental touch on Dillinger- almost making him heroic. It does nothing to humanize the actual 10 deaths left by Dillinger and his gang. It presented Marion Cotillard (an excellent actress) as his girlfriend, and she really does steal the scenes. Depp almost seems to sleepwalk through parts. Probably because he couldn't believe he had to be in every scene. It's stylized, melodramatic and sometimes bizarre. Christian Bale weirdly loses his annoying lisp while using his best southern accent. How come Batman lisps but not the (F)BI agent Purvis? Well, if you go, pack a lunch and an extra seat cushion. It was long enough that people FELT the length of it. At the end, everyone popped up like they were on call to the White House and opened their phones to see if Obama had called while they were away. DO people really think they are that important that they can't exit the theater without checking their messages? See- the movie made me crabby, too.